Gov. Reynolds Awards Iowa Businesses $14 Million in Grants to Create & Expand Child Care Options

Iowa Workforce Development Communications
For Immediate Release
Date: January 6, 2025
Contact: Jesse Dougherty
Telephone: 515-725-5487
Email: communications@iwd.iowa.gov

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Gov. Reynolds Awards Iowa Businesses $14 Million in Grants to Create & Expand Child Care Options

Announcement expands support for existing projects and awards new projects across Iowa.

DES MOINES, IOWA – Governor Kim Reynolds announced new grant awards for businesses across Iowa who are committed to expanding child care projects for their employees. 

Today’s awards, totaling $14 million, are driven by the Child Care Business Incentive (CCBI) Grant, which provides financial support for projects by employers that require new infrastructure for building child care centers in their communities (either onsite or with local centers).

The announced grants include expanded funding for some previous awardees of the Child Care Business Incentive Grant 1.0 (first awarded in 2022), as well as funding for new projects in a 2.0 version of the grant. 

• 1.0 Awardees (Existing Projects): $3.6 million to create 225 additional child care slots
• 2.0 Awardees (New Projects): $10.4 million to create 649 child care slots

Combined, the two sets of awarded projects are estimated to create nearly 875 new slots across the state. Visit this link to view a list of all awardees.

“We cannot overstate the importance of child care to Iowa’s workforce and its future. Our strategy for retaining the best workers must include creative ways to meet their child care needs,” said Governor Reynolds. “Today’s awards represent Iowa’s commitment to that strategy, and I’m excited to see what these organizations do to provide solutions for their individual communities.”

Projects that were prioritized include those that are located in high-demand areas for child care, those planning to increase capacity for additional slots across multiple age groups, or those building onsite child care centers. 

Awarded funds provided can be used by employers to support the expansion or new construction of child care and/or daycare facilities for employees, with the employer as the provider or in partnership with a local child care provider.

“This child care grant is an outstanding example of how strong partnerships between employers and communities lead to innovative ideas to solving local child care issues,” said Beth Townsend, Executive Director of Iowa Workforce Development. “We hope these awards inspire other employers to seek out new collaborations in their community as well as to think outside the box in developing workable child care solutions for their employees.”

For more information about the announced awards, visit workforce.iowa.gov/child-care-grants.